{"id":327783,"date":"2026-08-23T12:00:17","date_gmt":"2026-08-23T12:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/327783\/"},"modified":"2026-08-23T12:00:17","modified_gmt":"2026-08-23T12:00:17","slug":"odell-beckham-jr-came-oh-so-close-to-proving-to-giants-fans-he-still-has-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/327783\/","title":{"rendered":"Odell Beckham Jr. came oh-so-close to proving to Giants, fans he still has it"},"content":{"rendered":"

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. \u2014 This was what all those Odell Beckham Jr. fans were waiting for.<\/p>\n

Perhaps it was what head coach John Harbaugh was waiting for, as well: a chance, a real opportunity to turn back the clock with a vintage highlight to allow all of Beckham\u2019s many supporters to cry out, \u201cSee, he\u2019s still got it!\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

It was late in the second quarter of Saturday\u2019s 26-3 preseason victory over the Dolphins<\/a>, and the Giants fans on the scene at Hard Rock Stadium let out an audible gasp when Jameis Winston looked into the end zone from the Miami 14-yard line. <\/p>\n

Beckham got behind cornerback Miles Battle and Winston put the ball where it needed to be.<\/p>\n

It was about to happen.<\/p>\n

Beckham leaped into the air at the back of the end zone. A touchdown felt imminent, and that would have been something to rekindle those OBJ memories. <\/p>\n

Alas, it did not happen. <\/p>\n

The ball sailed between Beckham\u2019s hands and deflected away, as he could not make a grab that would have been fairly routine for him years ago during his heyday with the Giants.<\/p>\n

Beckham, clearly frustrated, went to his knees and bent backward as far as he could, his helmet nearly scraping the ground. <\/p>\n

It was a tough moment for the 33-year-old, who did not play in the NFL last season and is looking to make a comeback with the franchise that made him a first-round pick in 2014.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was in the air a long time,\u2019\u2019 Harbaugh told The Post. \u201cHe got up \u2014 way up. I know he would say, \u2018I wake up at 4 in the morning and I\u2019m making that play.\u2019 He knows he can make that play, and it\u2019s a really tough play to make.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaking it would have just been spectacular. I looked at that play as a positive in his favor. I thought it was impressive where he was at, going to get the ball. I think he\u2019s capable of still making that play.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Beckham feels the same way.<\/p>\n

\"NewOdell Beckham Jr. breaks a tackle against cornerback Ethan Bonner during the first half of the Giants\u2019 26-3 preseason win over the Dolphins on Aug. 22, 2026 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m pissed,\u2019\u2019 he said. \u201cThis is the one that keeps me up at night. It\u2019s a play I know I can make. I just felt like I was hanging so long. You take it on the chin like a man. The confidence is still there. I know I\u2019ll make that play the next time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Darius Slayton, Calvin Austin III and rookie Malachi Fields started at wide receiver, but Beckham was given plenty of opportunities in the first half. He made a nifty move on cornerback Ethan Bonner along the left sideline to turn a short gain after the catch into a 12-yard pickup. After he failed to come down with the ball in the end zone, Beckham hauled in a 5-yard reception to set up a Dominic Zvada field goal as time expired in the first half.<\/p>\n

\"NewJameis Winston (left) celebrates with Odell Beckham Jr. during the first half of the Giants\u2019 preseason win over the Dolphins. AP Photo\/Lynne Sladky<\/p>\n

Harbaugh has called Beckham one of his favorite players \u2014 they were together in 2023 with the Ravens \u2014 but personal feelings will not dictate roster spots. Beckham has stayed healthy and on the field \u2014 a major prerequisite \u2014 but has yet to make a play to separate himself from the other wide receivers in the room.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t care if it was higher, lower, wherever it was at, that\u2019s on me,\u2019\u2019 Beckham said. \u201cI feel like if the ball is anywhere near me, if it touches my fingertips, I\u2019m supposed to catch it.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

He nearly did. Almost. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. \u2014 This was what all those Odell Beckham Jr. fans were waiting for. Perhaps it…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":327784,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[9,2683,11,10,22,34030,319],"class_list":["post-327783","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-york","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-giants","tag-new-york-headlines","tag-new-york-news","tag-nfl","tag-odell-beckham-jr","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/327783","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=327783"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/327783\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/327784"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=327783"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=327783"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=327783"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}